


Young Grunkle

by Steffie



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging, Family Bonding, Fountain of Youth, Gen, Secrets, Understanding
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-10
Updated: 2015-11-26
Packaged: 2018-04-30 23:49:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,688
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5184368
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Steffie/pseuds/Steffie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Discontinued.  They only wanted their Grunkle Stan to feel young again. </p><p>Set before Not What He Seems.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

It was a quiet afternoon in the Mystery Shack. Wendy was chatting with Mabel and Dipper while Soos and Stan were busy glueing a new attraction together. It was a strange combination of a tiger's legs, a badger's body, a moose's antlers, a bear's head, a mermaid's tail and a duck's wings. Waddles was quite fascinated with the attraction until he got bored and decided to sit by Mabel's feet.

"There, that outta do it." Stan stated as he took a step back to marvel and his and Soos' new attraction.  
"Grunkle Stan, what's that supposed to be?" Dipper queried the moment his mind tried to register what he was seeing. Wendy shook her head when she noticed the weird combination.  
"This is the Mystery Shack's newest attraction. Behold, the unicorn mermaid." the man of mystery grinned in pride. His grin turned upside down when one of the antlers fell off. He bend down to pick it up; something he regretted seconds later.

"Hot Belgian Waffles, my back!!" Stan hissed when pain shot through his entire body the moment he straightened his back.   
"Grunkle Stan?" Mabel and Dipper gasped as they rushed towards their great uncle.  
"Mr. Pines?" Soos rushed to the Mystery Man's side, ready to help in any way he can.   
"I'll get the chiro pillow! " Wendy rushed into the house to find the pillow.

"Soos, help me to my chair. We'll close the Shack early today." Stan gritted his teeth from the intense pain.  
"Will do, Mr. Pines." Soos nodded vigorously before he gently aided the elder Pines to the living room. The Pine twins were left alone in the Shack.  
"Do you think Grunkle Stan will be okay?" Mabel asked anxiously as she cuddled Waddles close to her chest.  
"...I think he should be fine?"  
"Dipper..."  
"I guess it's something that happens when you're as old as Grunkle Stan. Remember when it was so cold that other night that Grunkle Stan complained about his shoulder and back aching?"  
"Yeah. Poor Grunkle Stan." Mabel sighed, her face filled with worry.   
They sat quietly in the Shack, deep in thought. They didn't even hear Soos or Wendy approach them from behind.  
"Hey dudes, Mr. Pines just wanted me to tell ya that he's fine. He just needs to rest for the rest of the day."  
"Yeah, just keep an eye on him and make sure he rests. We'll see ya tomorrow, 'kay?"   
"Bye, see you tomorrow!" Dipper smiled, while Mabel made Waddles wave goodbye.

"Hey kids, I can't find the remote!" Grunkle Stan's shouted from the living room.   
"Coming, Grunkle Stan!" Mabel jumped to her feet and scurried towards the living room, a confused Waddles trying to keep up with her. When Dipper entered the living room after his twin, he noticed an odd expression on his great uncle's face before he noticed his sister. It was almost as if he was longing for something?

"Grunkle Stan, are you feeling better now?" Mabel asked as she sat on the arm-rest. Her great-uncle ruffled her hair in response.  
"Sweetie, I am perfectly fine. It's just my body's not being co-operative with me. It happens when you're getting old."  
"Are you saying that if you're young again, you wouldn't have all those aches and pains anymore?" Dipper pondered out loud.  
"What are ya getting at, kid?"  
"Well...there's a...natural remedy I ...read...that mentions you'll feel quite young. I can get it for you, if you want, Grunkle Stan. You'll feel as if you had shed several decades off you age."  
"Dipper, it better not be something supernatural."  
"No, no. It's not that at all, Grunkle Stan. It's a natural remedy I heard from Wendy."  
"If it helps me with my back, I'll take it."  
"Great. I'll go and get some of that 'remedy'. Mabel, you stay here to look after Grunkle Stan."

"Dipper, can I talk to you for a sec?" Mabel asked as she slip off the arm-rest before she approached her twin.  
"Yeah, okay. What's up?" Dipper smiled, trying to hide his nervousness. Mabel grabbed her twin by his wrist to lead him towards the kitchen.  
"Dipper, are going to get something that was mentioned from the Journal?"  
"Um, yeah...?"  
"Dipper! That's dangerous! Who knows what it could do to our Grunkle--"  
"Wait, wait. Mabel, What I'm looking for is called a Youthshroom.", Dipper opened the journal to the page that had the illustration of the mushroom. It looked normal, expect it was shaped to resemble an hourglass, "It's a temporary change and will last for only a few days. Grunkle Stan must simply remember the best days of his life and he will have the same energy as when he was that age."  
"Dip-dip, is there another reason why you want to help Grunkle Stan so badly?"  
"Um...I assumed that if I were to give him an example how the supernatural helped him, he wouldn't complain if I were searching for the weird and strange anymore...and maybe Grunkle Stan will like me a bit more?"  
"Oh, Dip. Grunkle Stan likes you; he simply enjoys teasing you for being too serious and a nerd." Mabel giggled before she patted her twin on the back.  
"Hmph. Okay, I'm going to get that Youthshroom. The journal mentioned it would be nearby gigantic trees, so I'll be back within ten minutes." Dipper gave his sister a thumbs-up before he left.

It didn't take Dipper long before he found a Youthshroom. He was about to pick it, when he noticed something was off.  
"Waitaminute...", Dipper quickly glanced at the Youthshroom page before he glanced back at the mushroom that was in front of him, "This Youthshroom looks a bit smaller; but the journal didn't mention anything about what could happen if someone consumes a smaller mushroom. Oh well." Dipper shrugged before he picked the Youthshroom. He wished he brought his black light with. He noticed earlier in the morning that it didn't want to work for some reason; and Soos agreed to try and get it fixed.

The pre-teen boy tip-toed as quietly as he could when he came back the Mystery Shack. He didn't want Grunkle Stan to notice the Youthshroom yet. He entered the kitchen and placed the Youthshroom gently on the table. He opened the journal.  
"Okay, I must simply ask Grunkle Stan to remember the best days of his life while he's chewing it? Sounds simple enough." Dipper raced towards the living room, ignoring the confused look Grunkle Stan wore. Mabel sat on the floor, scribbling something.

"Kid, why are looking so nervous?"   
"No reason, no reason. Grunkle Stan, umm, here's the remedy I spoke about earlier." Dipper offered the Youthsroom to his great-uncle.   
"A mushroom? Are you kidding?"  
"It's a special mushroom, Grunkle Stan!" Mabel bubbled before she sat on the arm-rest.  
"Oh, really?"  
"They say that you must think about the best days of your life while you chew the mushroom." Dipper explained.  
"--And this should cure me of my aching back?" Grunkle Stan was still skeptic.  
"Well, it doesn't hurt to try, Grunkle Stan. You want your back to get better, right?" Mabel pointed out.  
"Oh, what the heck." the man of mystery shrugged before he shoved the Youthshroom in his mouth.

"Remember, happy thoughts! The best days of your life!" Mabel cheered.

_  
"Hey, chin up, buddy. Look. One of these days, you and me are gonna sail away from this dumb town. We'll hunt for treasure, get all the girls, and be an unstoppable team of adventurers."  
"You really mean it?"  
"High six?"  
"High six."  
_

"Oh no, Dipper! Look, Grunkle Stan's becoming younger!" Mabel panicked as she and Dipper noticed how their great-uncle's hair became darker and he started to shrink.  
"I don't understand, he's only supposed to feel youthful." Dipper felt his heart race. 

To be continued...

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	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for the wonderful reviews. They mean a lot to me, 
> 
> especially since this my first Gravity Falls fic :)

"Oh no, Dipper! Grunkle Stan is shrinking!" Mabel shrieked as she and her brother watched their great-uncle became smaller and his hair became darker. The man wore a befuddled expression on his face before he suddenly closed his eyelids and laid outstretched on the couch, which made Dipper's heart thunder in his chest. Mabel jumped onto the couch and tried to shake him awake. While she noticed that her great-uncle regressed into a ten-year old boy and that his clothes didn't fit him anymore, her priority was to make sure he wasn't dead.

"Grunkle Stan! Grunkle Stan! Gomphers somehow got into the Shack and is eating all the money!" the girl waited for the moment for a response. Her heart sank when their great-uncle didn't respond.  
"That's not supposed to happen! He's only supposed to feel young!", the young boy shook his head. He opened the journal on the page about the Youthshroom, "If only my black-light was working. Oh man...Grunkle Stan will hate me--"

"Ugh, what happened?" Grunkle Stan uttered as he finally came to. If they weren't so relieved to hear their great-uncle is fine, they would've teased him about his voice. Who would've thought Grunkle Stan would sound like that when he was young?  
"Grunkle Stan! You're awake!" Mabel and Dipper bubbled happily.  
"Where am I? Who are you?" Stan's eyes darted from side to side the moment he noticed his surroundings. The twins glanced at one another nervously before they dared to glance back at their young great-uncle.  
"Well? Who are you, and where are my Pa and Ma? Where is my brother?"

"Oh, we're your cousins! You're staying with us at our uncle's home for the summer holidays." Mabel let out a small chuckle before she gave Stan a friendly punch on his shoulder.  
"Why only me; and not my bro?"  
"Well, your folks told our uncle that they and your brother are going to this very nerdy, boring place for the holidays and they don't want you to be bored out of your mind." Dipper chuckled.

"...Okay...if you say so. I'm Stan. What's your name?" the young boy smiled before Mabel shook his hand.  
"Hi Stan, I'm Mabel. This is Dipper, my bro. We're twins!"   
"You're twins? Me and my bro are twins too." Stan beamed happily while he shook Dipper's hand.  
"Really?! Wow! That's great!" Mabel cheered. She stopped cheering when she felt Dipper tap her on the shoulder.  
"Mabel, a word, please?" the male twin whispered in his sister's ear.  
"Okay, Dip-Dip. Stan, we're just going to get such food from the kitchen. Just stay right and watch T.V., okay?"  
"...Okay. Why am I wearing these clothes instead of my own?"  
"We were playing dress-up."  
"...Makes sense." the young boy shrugged before his eyes were glued on the screen. He didn't even notice that a pig was staring at him from the floor.

The twins gave a worried glance at their de-aged relative before they rushed to the kitchen.  
"Grunkle Stan has a twin brother?" Mabel's jaw hung open before she waved her arms to try and shake the shock out of her body.  
"Well, remember how Mom and Dad kept quiet whenever we asked if we had any other relatives? Maybe Grunkle Stan and his twin brother had a bad fight and refused to speak to one another?" Dipper pondered out loud as he racked his brain for answers.  
"Oh, yeah. Huh." Mabel shrugged as she stared at the floor in worry.  
"Since Grunkle Stan has the memories of when he's a kid, we must pretend to be his cousins. When Wendy and Soos come in to work tomorrow, we must explain to them about what happened to Grunkle Stan."  
"Yeah, and we must also get him some clothes. Do you think any of your clothes could fit?"  
"I guess. It might be a bit too big, though--"  
"Great. Now, let's make some toast and celebrate that our grunkle doesn't have back-pain for awhile."  
"It's only temporary. I think. When Soos comes in tomorrow, I sure hope he'll have my black-light fixed so that I can check what the author could have written about the Youthshroom in invisible ink."

While the twins were making toast for dinner, Stan sat quietly in the chair. He shifted in the chair while he waited for his cousins to come back.  
"I wonder if Pointdexter would've liked Ducktective?" Stan pondered out sadly as he watched the duck on television. Waddles crawled onto the couch and sat next to him.   
"Our uncle can't be that bad if he allows you in the house, right?", the young boy smiled as he gave Waddles an ear-rub, "But, why are we left on our own?"

"Dinner's ready!" Mabel announced as she barged into the living room.  
"Great. I'm hungry. Hey, do you know where my clothes are? I can't find them anywhere." Stan wondered out loud as he stood up from the couch.  
"Oh--oh! I'll call Dipper quick." the poor girl blushed before she rushed to get her twin.  
"Okay--" the poor boy was confused what made his cousin blush.

An hour may have passed, but it felt as if time stood still as Dipper, Mabel and Stan sat in the kitchen to eat toast. The twins didn't notice at first how much their great-uncle resembled the male twin until he got dressed into Dipper's spare clothes. The resemblance was uncanny.

"So, where is our uncle?" Stan pondered out loud. If he noticed how rigid the twins became, he didn't mention anything.  
"Our uncle?! Erm--he had to go out of town for a couple days." Dipper and Mabel hastilly replied in unison.  
"--And he left us on our own?"   
"Yeah! He said that we're big enough to live here on our own. Besides, this town is quite safe."  
"So, what's the name of this town?"  
"The town's name is Gravity Falls."   
"Gravity Falls, huh? That's the town that has all the weird stuff going on, right? My brother would've loved it here."  
"Really?!" Dipper's face lit up.  
"Yeah. Still find it weird he's not here instead--" there was suspicion in Stan's tone.  
"Well, your parents did take your brother to this science camp thingy. Very boring. Trust me." Mabel pointed out while Dipper felt quite insulted.  
"Oh, yeah. Who wants to go to such a boring place." Stan laughed, although it was quite forced.

After they had lunch, Mabel and Stan drew and made crafts together with Waddles' help while Dipper decided to let them bond on their own. Guess Grunkle Stan bonded so well with Mabel because they're so similar after all?

When it was finally bedtime, the twins got dressed into their pyjamas.  
"Hey, what gives?" Stan fumed when he entered the bedroom.  
"What's the matter, Stan?" Mabel dared to ask. Dipper tensed.  
"Where's my bed?" Stan huffed as he pointed at the beds.  
"Oh, that! You have your own bedroom. Our uncle said that you're big enough to sleep on your own. We'll show you where it is!" Dipper explained before he lead Stan to his, well, Grunkle Stan's bedroom.

"Well, here's your bedroom. Your clothes should be in your drawers, or somethng. Night, Stan." Dipper left as fast as he could out of habit.  
"Ah. Okay. Night, Dipper." Stan sighed as he climbed onto the bed that was too large for him. He was out like a light the moment he closed his eyes.

"Hey Dipper, did we treat Grunkle Stan right?" Mabel pondered out loud as she stared at the ceiling above her head.  
"What do you mean, Mabel?" the male twin asked groggily.  
"I mean, all those lies we told him and we didn't even buy extra clothes for him either. We're terrible babysitters."  
"...Mabel, we didn't expect him to suddenly de-age into a young boy. We did as well as we could in our current situation. Besides, I'm sure our lies didn't hurt him."  
"Yeah, I guess you're right. Thanks, bro-bro."

_  
"You ignoramus! Your brother was gonna be our ticket out of this dump! All you ever do is lie and cheat right on your brother's coattails. Well this time you cost our family potential millions! And until you make us a fortune, you aren't welcome in this household."  
_

Poor Stan shot up from bed in horror. He felt his heart thunder in his chest. Hot tears ran down his cheeks, but he quickly wiped them off with his small fists.

 

To be continued...

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	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, and welcome to my brand-new Gravity Falls fan-fic.
> 
> Thank you so much for the wonderful reviews. They mean a lot to me, especially since this my first Gravity Falls fic :)
> 
> This story is set before Not What He Seems.
> 
> All characters belong to Alex Hirsch/ Disney  
> Story belongs to me

"--and Grunkle Stan is now a young boy." Dipper finished his sentence. He, Mabel, Wendy and Soos were sitting around in the Mystery Shack as Dipper explained to the teenagers what happened the previous day.  
"Man, that must've been weird, huh?" Wendy chuckled to lessen the tension she sensed.  
"Yeah, it's strange seeing him like this."  
"Well, maybe you can use this opportunity to learn more about him?"

Dipper frowned in thought at Wendy's suggestion.   
"True, but it's still odd hanging out with Grunkle Stan. Oh, yeah! Soos, did you manage to get the black-light fixed?"  
"Yep, dude. It's now working as good as new. Some wires were loose, so I just fastened them back together. So, where is Mr. Pines?" Soos pondered out loud as he handed the black-light to Dipper.  
"Thanks, Soos. Maybe I should keep the black-light on me from now on. Grunkle Stan's still asleep. Best not to wake him up yet."

Dipper opened the journal to the page on Youthshrooms and shone the black-light over it. The invisible writing became visible; and it filled the entire page.  
"What does it say?" Wendy asked from her chair while Mabel and Soos leaned over Dipper's shoulders.

"'Thanks to my haste, I accidentally picked the smaller Youthshroom; and discovered that it can turn one into a young child. Since it takes five days for the Youthshroom to be completely ingested by the human body, the person that consumed it will gradually turn back into their true age. They will only have the memories and personality of when they were of a certain age, yet they seem to have dreams and nightmares of when they were older. They might not remember much when they turn back to normal, but there's a possibility that they may feel uncomfortable about the idea of someone seeing how they were when they were younger. There's no remedy other than to wait for the five days to pass.'"

Mabel cheered in delight while Wendy, Soos and Dipper glanced at one another in confusion.  
"Yah, now we can have lots of fun with Grunkle Stan."  
"These five days are going to be so weird."  
"Why will they be so weird?" a new voice replied as Stan and Waddles entered the Shack. His question had been answered with silence.

"Good morning, Stan. How did you sleep?" Dipper greeted his young great-uncle.  
"Slept okay, I guess." Stan shrugged. It anyone had stared at his face long enough, they would have noticed faint tear-stains on his cheeks.  
"Great."  
"Morning, Stan!" Mabel waved.  
"Mornin', Mabel. So, who are they?" Stan asked as he pointed at Wendy and Soos.  
"This is Wendy and Soos; they are Mr. Pines' employees." Dipper replied. Wendy, Soos and Stan simply nodded in response.  
"The Shack, what's that?"  
"It's a place that has lots of attractions and gifts for tourists that are interested in the supernatural." Wendy explained in a bored tone.  
"Really?! That's cool. So, is this our uncle's business?"  
"Yep, it's Mr. Pine's pride and joy." Soos proudly explained.

"Cool, so the people that just parked outside are customers?" Stan asked as he pointed at the window. As he was intrigued about the Shack, he didn't notice how panicked Soos, Dipper and Mabel were. Wendy took deep breaths to calm herself down.

Wendy smiled when an idea formed in her head.  
"Hey Stan, how good are you at telling stories about supernatural creatures?"  
"Very good. Ma even told me I have a great imagination; and even know how to make weird stuff sound possible." Stan beamed with pride as Wendy searched until she found Grunkle Stan's fez and cane behind the counter.  
"That's great! Okay, put this fez on your head and carry this cane with you. You are Mr. Mystery Junior, Mr. Pine's great-nephew."  
"Wait, you want me to tell them stories about the supernatural? Cool!"  
"Not just any creatures, things that are in the Mystery Shack. Can you do it?" Dipper pointed out as he watched Mabel straighten the fez on their young great-uncle's head.

"Of course I can. I will make our uncle proud." Stan smiled from ear to ear.

To be continued...

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	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the comments and kudos, it means a lot to me ^_^

"Okay Stan, you know what to do, right?" Wendy asked as she watched the small boy hop towards the door.  
"Yeah, I got it. I will make our uncle proud." Stan grinned from ear to ear. Mabel gave the young boy two thumbs up while Dipper leaned on the counter next to Wendy. Soos quickly made sure the items weren't skew before he opened the door.

"Welcome everyone to the Mystery Shack!" Stan exclaimed with pride. The small group of tourists wore confused expressions when they noticed the small boy wearing a fez and holding a cane in his hand.  
"Um, is this the actual Mystery Shack? I heard Mr. Mystery was supposed to be here." an elderly lady asked as she looked down at Stan.  
"Unfortunately, Mr. Mystery is not here to give you a tour around the Shack, but don't fear! I am Mr. Mystery Junior, his nephew. I will show you around!" Stan exclaimed with pride as he pointed at himself.

For a moment, the tourists looked doubtful.  
"Okay sweetie, please show me what this Mystery Shack has." an elderly woman spoke in a syrupy tone as she leaned down to be at Stan's eye-level.  
"Sure. follow me! Um, please!" Stan proudly exclaimed as he gestured the tourists to enter the Shack.

"Wow, guess Stan was never shy as a kid." Wendy smiled as she watched her young boss stand next to the Grizzlycorn and the tourists watched as he was deep in thought for a moment.

"This Grizzlycorn is a lot more dangerous than the normal bear! You want to know why? He poops glitter and rainbows that are toxic! If you see this fella, run away as fast as you can!" Wendy heard Stan exclaim, and she couldn't help but chuckle at her young boss' warning.

"Yeah, and not as grumpy either." Dipper pointed out as he watched his young great-uncle lead the tourists to different attractions and give child-like explanations about what these creatures could do. He noticed that Mabel and Soos were hiding in-between the tourists, ready to help Stan. SO far, they didn't need to help the boy yet.  
"Really? I always imagined him as a wet blanket."  
"He's actually a lot like Mabel. No wonder he gets along with her so well."  
"Well, I can't wrap my head around the idea of him acting like Mabel. Hey, how about we all go to town after we are done with the tourists? That way, we can see how Stan really acts when he's a kid. Maybe even take some photos for blackmail?"  
"That's a great idea! Maybe we can get something to eat besides cornflakes and toast." Dipper agreed. 

"--and this is the unicorn mermaid!" Stan exclaimed with pride as he stood at the last attraction.  
"What can it do?" one of the tourists piped up.  
"Good question, sir! You see, it can do lots of things! Those legs makes it run as fast as lightning, so you can never outrun it! those wings help it fly so high that it could reach the moon! Its body helps it to burrow so far that it can dig all the way to the other side of the world in two minutes! Its tail helps it swim so fast that he can swim all the way to China in a minute! Its antlers makes it so strong that it can lift an elephant without effort! Its jaws are so strong it can bite through um...the toughest thing in the world! So, never try and anger the unicorn mermaid!" Stan exclaimed.

"--and that's it for the tour. If you want to buy any souvenirs, now's your chance." Mabel announced when she noticed Stan looked a bit confused when he noticed that there were no more attractions inside of the Shack for him to show off.  
"Wow, he's good. He actually acted a lot like his uncle." one of the tourists whispered to his wife as they were checking the shirts out.  
"Pity we couldn't see him and his uncle in action. That would've been so adorable!" 

After an hour had passed, the last tourist had finally left.  
"Did I do okay?" Stan asked shyly, which surprised Soos, Wendy and the twins.  
"Dude, you were great!", Soos cheered, "High five!"  
"Yeah, not bad for your first time." Wendy gave a thumbs up.  
"Yeah, so we are going to town to have breakfast and have fun to celebrate." Dipper smiled as he patted his great-uncle on his back.  
"We're going to have so much fun, Stan! We're going to go to the game arcade and might even go on a boat, if you want." Mabel cheered as she hugged the young boy. No one noticed Stan's pained expression for a moment before he forced a happy grin on his face.

"Okay, let's go, dudes! I'll lock up when everyone's in the car." Soos explained as he got outside, Dipper and Mabel followed behind. Wendy still sat in her chair as she quickly texted a message to her friends that she's going to town. Stan stared at her with sad eyes for a couple minutes.

"Can I admit something to you, Wendy?" Stan asked.   
"Sure, go ahead." Wendy smiled, expecting him to admit that he stole a couple of coins from the cashier when she had her back turned.  
"Please don't tell Mabel, Dipper or Soos anything about what I'm gonna say!"  
"My lips are sealed, Stan."

"I know they don't want to say anything, but I know what happened." Stan struggled to keep his voice even.  
"Oh?", Wendy was confused, "What happened, Stan?"  
"I always had a feeling Pa preferred my brother over me, but to just dump me to some relative I don't even know? Ma and Pa didn't even bother to pack any clothes for me." Tears threatened to gush from Stan's eyes.  
"Oh, Stan. No, it's not like that at all!" Wendy tried to reassure him as she leaned down to be at her boss' eye-level.  
"Really? Then how come I had a weird dream about Pa kicking me out and not wanting me back?" Stan grumbled in anger as he wiped his eyes.

Wendy felt lost. What should she say?  
"It's true, isn't it? I always had a feeling Pa hated me. I always excused his treatment of me because I thought he wanted to make me tough."  
"Oh, Stan--"  
"I know I am the dumb twin, but I can't help it if Poindexter has all the brains. I can't help it if everyone likes him more than me."   
"Oh Stan, I don't know what to say.", Wendy admitted, "But, you are not dumb. Dipper, Mabel, Soos and I care about you."  
"What about our uncle?"  
"He's a grouchy ol' man that pretends he hates everyone, but he has a big heart." Wendy smiled.

"Thanks, Wendy." Stan smiled.  
"You're welcome, Stan. Now, let's go to the car and have fun."  
"Okay. Please don't tell them what I told you."  
"I won't, Stan. My lips are zipped."

"Hey dudes, are you ready?" Soos called as he knocked on the front door.  
"We're ready, Soos." Wendy called as she gave her young boss a small smile before they left the Shack to go to town.

To be continued...

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End file.
